An entry for SilverDreams82's contest on Instagram

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Finch sighed, glancing between her notes and the homework she was assigned. She tapped her pencil against her beak, trying to put an answer to a question. She dropped it, groaning quietly and furrowing her eyebrows in thought.

Gallus soared just below the clouds, scanning the area for where he knew his girlfriend usually came to do homework after school. Spotting her, he silently lowered a few feet behind her--far enough away so she didn't notice the breeze his wings made. He tiptoed behind her, a mischievous grin on his face.

"BOO!" Gallus shouted as he pounced beside her.

"AH-!" Finch yelped and jumped, stumbling away from her supposed aggressor.

Gallus burst out into laughter, falling over. It took a moment for Finch to understand what had just happened, and when she did, she squinted and glared at him.

"You jerk!" she snapped at him, stomping the ground.

"I'm sorry!" he laughed, "It's just way too easy!"

Finch huffed as she let her pounding heart steady. She rolled her eyes and sat back down. Gallus wiped away his tears, calming down. As his laughing stopped, she shot him a quick glare.

"Hey, you want to race to Sugarcube Corner?" Gallus wondered, as if forgetting what had just happened.

"Hmm . . ." Finch thought on it, staring at the papers in front of her. "I've kind of got homework to do. Sorry."

". . . Oh, I get it. Okay. Understandable."

"Huh? What's understandable?"

"You don't want to race against me because you don't want to lose."

"I didn't say that."

"No, you didn't have to. Not a lot of people are brave enough to go against me. And I definitely don't see you being a part of the group that is."

Finch furrowed her eyebrows, staring at him with wide, narrowed eyes as he studied his claws. She angrily stood up, making him look up at her with a dulled expression.

"I know what you're doing, and I accept your challenge!" Finch barked, widening her stance.

"Heh, I knew that'd work! Alright then- Go!" Gallus suddenly jumped up, flying into the air.

"Wh- Hey!"

Finch hastily gathered her books and papers and stuffed them in her satchel. She flew up, chasing after Gallus. He laughed, slowing down a bit so she could catch up. Before he knew it, he was struggling to keep up with her.

"What's wrong, Gal? Can't keep up?" Finch teased.

"That's what you'd like to think, isn't it?" Gallus sneered as he raised above her.

They twirled around each other playfully, though both of them still intent on being ahead of the other. Every few seconds, they would switch leads: Finch, then Gallus, then Finch. She looked over at him, chuckling as she saw the concentrated look on his face. His eyes widened as he slowed down, almost coming to a complete stop. She looked back at him, raising an eyebrow.

A loud roar made Finch's face go pale, and she was about to found out why Gallus had stopped so abruptly. Turning back around, she came face-to-face with a snarling dragon. She yelped, swerving to keep from running into it.

She barely avoided the dragon, but in her disorientation, didn't realize that she was flying directly towards a wooden beam. She crashed headfirst against it, then fell to the ground, the collision alone nearly knocking her out. Gallus gasped, quickly swooping down and landing beside her.

"Finch! Are you okay?" Gallus worried, kneeling down to her.

"Ugh," she groaned, birds flying above her head as her eyes rolled and her head wobbled.

"I'm so sorry!" he heard Fluttershy blurt. "Is she hurt? Does she need help?"

He looked up at her--where she was flying in place next to the dragon--glancing back to Finch. "I'm not sure. I should be able to handle it, though."

Fluttershy nodded, before turning back to the dragon with a stern look on her face and her hooves on her hips. The dragon lowered its head, whimpering. It pushed itself off the ground and flew into the air. Fluttershy glanced back at the dazed griffon with a worried expression. She then flew the dragon off.

"Get out of here," Gallus hissed, shooing the birds--that were lingering above Finch's head--off; they fluttered away, following after Fluttershy. "Are you okay, Finch?"

Finch shakily stood up. "I'm completely fine! Why do you ask?"

She leaned to the side, tripping over her own paws. As she tried to regain her balance, tumbling back and forth, she kept running into things and knocking things over.

" 'Completely fine,' my butt," Gallus sneered, stopping her and trying to help her steady herself.

"Nah, I am! Just take a look at me! Let's get back up there and finish that race!" Finch blabbered as she threw her hand up, pointing her finger up into the sky.

"We can call the race off for now."

"What? No way! I was winning!"

As Finch tried to fly off, Gallus grabbed her tail and pulled her back. She fell back down, grunting. She tried to stand up, but he sat down on her wing to keep it pinned down--making sure not to put all of his weight on it, though; if she had injured her wing, he didn't want to make it worse. She groaned as he held her head down.

"Finch, you're going to hurt yourself. Chill out," Gallus insisted.

She sighed in defeat as she lay down. She closed her eyes, the spinning making her feel sick to her stomach. When he was sure she wasn't going to try to escape, he got off of her.

"Here, stand up . . . carefully."

Finch hummed and nodded to show that she was going to cooperate. She shakily stood up, looking up at him. He stood by her side, making sure he was there in case she started to fall over again.

"Hop on my back," Gallus told her, turning for her some.

"What? No, I can--"

Gallus sighed loudly, interrupting her. He rolled his eyes and walked behind her, Finch watching curiously. Her eyes widened as he slithered between her legs and crawled underneath her. He stood up, lifting her along with him. He spread his wings and carried her up in the air.

Finch opened her mouth, about to object, but stopped upon realizing that it wasn't worth it. She closed her eyes and sighed in defeat, resting her head.

"Where are we going?" she wondered.

"To a hospital, so they can check your head . . . and any other part that you may have injured."

"Why are you carrying me, though? I should be able to fly on my own.  If you're worried about me not being able to go straight, you could just nudge me if I'm going off course."

"Maybe--unless your wing's injured--but this is much easier. I also don't want you to get any more hurt . . . so let's not test that . . . you dork."